Sound monitoring screen savers for enhanced fire, safety, security and health monitoring

Abstract

Method, system and device useful with conventional personal computers respond automatically to an identified alarm sound by sending a notification signal via the Internet only when a special sound monitoring program is active.

1. A method for monitoring sound with a personal computer, comprising:
 running a sound monitoring screen saver program in a personal computer in response to a timeout event occurring because an externally generated input is not received by the personal computer within a predetermined time period during operation of the personal computer; 
 from time to time during the running of the sound monitoring screen saver program, accessing from the personal computer an Internet site and sending to the accessed Internet site a predetermined signal if the computer is properly functioning under operation of the running screen saver program; 
 receiving ambient sound at the microphone of the personal computer; 
 determining with the running screen saver program whether ambient sound received at the microphone includes an alarm sound from a residential smoke detector providing a sound output in accordance with a predetermined standard; and 
 accessing from the personal computer the Internet site when an alarm sound is determined and sending an alarm indicating signal to the accessed Internet site. 
 
   
   
     2. A method as defined in  claim 1 , further comprising downloading the sound monitoring screen saver program from the Internet site to the personal computer such that the sound monitoring screen saver program is the default screen saver program in the personal computer. 
   
   
     3. A method as defined in  claim 1 , further comprising displaying on a display of the personal computer, using the running screen saver program, advertising indicia encoded in the sound monitoring screen saver program. 
   
   
     4. A method as defined in  claim 1  wherein the personal computer is selected from the group consisting of desk top computers, lap top computers, notebook computers, handheld personal computers, palm tops, pocket computers, personal digital assistants and smart phones. 
   
   
     5. A method as defined in  claim 1 , wherein the screen saver program includes a digital acoustic signature recognition technology selected from the group consisting of matched filtering, cross correlation, and neural networking. 
   
   
     6. An alarm monitoring system, comprising:
 a central receiving station including a computer having a plurality of sound monitoring screen saver programs stored thereat; and 
 a plurality of user sites, each of the sites including at least one respective conventional personal computer having a microphone, system software and means for communicating with the computer at the central receiving station to download from the computer at the central receiving station a respective one of the sound monitoring screen saver programs compatible with the system software in the respective personal computer. 
 
   
   
     7. An alarm monitoring system as defined in  claim 6 , wherein each of the user sites further includes at least one smoke detector that emits a characteristic sound in response to detecting smoke at the respective site such that the sound is detected by the microphones. 
   
   
     8. An alarm monitoring system as defined in  claim 6  wherein the user site personal computer is selected from the group consisting of desk top computers, lap top computers, notebook computers, handheld personal computers, palm tops, pocket computers, personal digital assistants and smart phones. 
   
   
     9. An alarm monitoring system as defined in  claim 6 , wherein the screen saver programs include a digital acoustic signature recognition technology selected from the group consisting of matched filtering, cross correlation, and neural networking. 
   
   
     10. An alarm monitoring system as defined in  claim 6 , wherein each of the user sites further includes a fire alarm device that emits a characteristic sound in response to detecting fire at the respective site such that the sound is detected by the microphones. 
   
   
     11. An alarm monitoring system as defined in  claim 10 , wherein the fire alarm device is selected from the group consisting of smoke detectors, heat detectors and carbon monoxide detectors. 
   
   
     12. A memory device for a computer, comprising:
 a memory substrate for a personal computer; and 
 screen saver means disposed on the memory substrate, the screen saver means including:
 means, encoded on the memory substrate to cooperatively function with system software of the personal computer, for controlling what indicia are displayed on a display of the personal computer during user inactivity periods; 
 means, encoded on the memory substrate to cooperatively function with system software of the personal computer, for determining when sound received through a microphone of the personal computer is an alarm sound; and 
 means, encoded on the memory substrate to cooperatively function with system software of the personal computer, for communicating responsive signals when an alarm sound and/or alarm signal is determined. 
 
 
   
   
     13. A memory device as defined in  claim 12 , wherein the screen saver means includes means, encoded on the memory substrate to cooperatively function with system software of the personal computer, for generating status signals to be transmitted to a remote location to indicate operational status of the personal computer when the screen saver means is in operation in the personal computer. 
   
   
     14. A memory device as defined in  claim 12 , wherein the means for controlling what indicia are displayed includes means, encoded on the memory substrate to cooperatively function with system software of the personal computer, for defining advertising indicia to be displayed on the display of the personal computer. 
   
   
     15. A memory device as defined in  claim 12 , wherein the screen saver means includes a digital acoustic signature recognition technology comprising a technique selected from the group consisting of matched filtering, cross correlation, and neural networking. 
   
   
     16. A memory device as defined in  claim 12 , wherein the screen saver means includes a library of acoustic alarm signals. 
   
   
     17. A memory device as defined in  claim 12 , wherein the screen saver means includes instructions to download a library of acoustic alarm signals from an Internet Web site.